Image viewer dialog window

If webpages open slower than usually or downloads seem to last for ages, it’s not necessarily caused by your colleague’s illicit gaming at fault. Here are some other factors that can affect your internet speed.

Hardware

Your internet speed heavily depends on your network equipment, such as the router or cable). For example, an ethernet connection is generally more stable and quicker than Wi-Fi. If you’re using a Wi-Fi connection, your internet speed might decrease as more devices connect to the same network. Last, but not least, your online work might be slowed down by the hardware of the computer itself – for example, if you have a weak processor.

A little extra for Wi-fi users

If your Wi-Fi router is located far from the devices, your internet speed won’t be optimal. To solve this problem, consider getting a wireless repeater. These are little signal copiers that can be placed between the router and the device to double the strength of the Wi-Fi signal. Physical obstacles placed between the router and devices, especially water and metal, can also reduce internet speed. So, move away metal boards, if any, and aquariums.

Viruses

Once a virus or malware kicks in, it might be running in the background, connecting to the internet without your permission and draining your computer’s resources. Take precautions by installing an antivirus program, and only get add-ons and extensions from trusted sources, such as Opera’s catalog.

The software you run

If you run too many apps that need to connect to the internet at the same time, things will naturally go slower. Some of them might run in the background without you noticing. Check the auto-update, sync or backup settings, for example, in file-sharing apps you use.

Also, make sure you keep only the necessary add-ons and toolbars in your browser. Each of them is a separate small app that can take up a share of your bandwidth.

Number of users

Internet speed slowdowns will occur when a large number of people try to connect to the internet at the same time. These often happen during peak activity hours, such as after work hours when everyone gets home and tries to connect to the web. Similarly, on a crowded public Wi-Fi where many users are using one network (at the airport for example), slow internet speeds are typical.

Do you want to speed up your web surfing? Opera won’t increase your internet speed, but we do know how to help you browse faster. Try Opera and see how its handy Opera Turbo function compresses data and makes webpages load quicker when you’re on a sluggish network.

By the way, if you’d like to run a quick check of your internet speed, this little Opera extension will help.